Sportsbooks Face Ohio Regulators New Amendment
State Trying to Work With Those Who Have Unused Licenses
It’s no secret that many states have benefitted greatly from sports betting. It’s been a solid source of tax revenue for the states offering it in some form.
Ohio has been no exception, as the Buckeye State has pulled in $187,388,451 million in its first year. The state’s cut for the first three months of 2024 is nearly $49 million.
Naturally, the state would like to see those amounts increase. From that perspective, the Ohio Casino Control Commission is taking a look at sports betting license holders who have not started accepting wagers or haven’t used them in more than a year.
An Ohio regulators new amendment will see the state have more control over sportsbooks who aren’t accepting bets.
Sportsbooks in Ohio are classified in three ways. Online sports are considered Type A licensees, retail sportsbooks are Type B and kiosks are Type C.
The law requires the Ohio Casino Control Commission to take away the license of any Type A establishment that doesn’t accept wagers for a year.
The Ohio regulators new amendment reinforces that, but also gives the commission a little bit of leeway in granting exceptions or extensions.
“A type A sports gaming proprietor may not apply to renew its license if it did not actively offer sports gaming to the economic benefit of the state under the license during the preceding license term and must wait a minimum of one year from the expiration of the license before seeking another license,” the amendment reads.
The amendment also extends the “use it or lose it” requirements to the Type B and Type C licenses.
Comment Period Ends May 7
In November, the Ohio Casino Control Commission changed the “use it or lose it” waiver until June 30, 2024.
That gives sportsbooks another seven weeks to become operational, but the sportsbooks also had plenty of time to prepare for that date.
The OCCC also gave sportsbooks until May 7 to comment on the Ohio regulators new amendment. The commission will then look at the comments and see if any tweaks to the amendment are warranted.
Although the amendment looks a bit harsh, it actually gives the OCCC’s executive director some discretion in revoking a license. That could turn out to be a good thing for the sportsbooks not accepting bets.
There are three Type A licensees not taking wagers from those betting online. They are Underdog Sports, who have partnered with the Cincinnati Reds, and just went live in North Carolina.
WynnBet, which starting closing U.S. operations in 2023, and the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs entered into an agreement with Fubo Sportsbook, which shut down in 2022.
The Cavaliers could benefit from the new amendment by receiving more time to find a sportsbook to partner with. That will be up to the executive director if the amendment passes as it is currently written.
There are seven Type B licenses for retail sportsbook licenses that have not been acted on. The Cleveland Browns have one, as does Crew SC Stadium Company.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame Village also has an unused Type B license. There are other places, such as Lori’s Roadhouse and Phantom Fireworks, that have not started taking retail sports wagers.
All Type C license holders have operational kiosks, which allow customers to wager their tips on sports betting. There are roughly 900 kiosks in Ohio.
For gambling betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
